Wire-reel.



W. E. EIGHHOFF. WIRE REEL.

APPLICATION FILED DEO.10,'1912. RENEWED JUNE 22, 1014.

1,108,726, Patented Aug125,1914J.

2 SHEETS SHEBT 1..

INVENTOR ML TH? E. E/LHHOFE AT ORNEYS Inc NORRIS PETERS CQ. PHOTO-LITHLI, WASHINGTON. D. C.

W. E. EIGHHOFP.

WIRE REEL.

APPLICATION FILED DEG, 10, 1912. .RENEWED JUNE 22, 1914.

1,108,726. Patented Aug. 25, 1914i.v

- 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2" III/ MI I/ E IV T0 R WALTER EE/CHHOF/f ATTORNEYS WALTER nnnswonrn EIOHHOFF, or sou'rrr PASADENA, cnnrronnra.

WIRE-REEL.

Specification of Letters lPatent.

Patented Aug. 25, 1914;.

Application filed December 10, 1912, Serial No. 735,924. Renewed .Tune 22, 1914. Serial No. 846,697.

reels generally, is more particularly de signed for'use by the linemen oftelephone, telegraph and electric llghtlcoinpanies, in

which ample strengthis required to support the weight of heavy coils of wire, especially when the reel is so disposed as to turn on an approximately horizontal axis for reelmg or taking up the wire.

It is a design of my invention to increase the strength and efficiency of reels of the in: dicated character. I

It is also a design of my invention to make provision for conveniently and quickly dis posing the reelto turn on either a vertical axis, or an approximately horizontal axis as may be desired for paying out the wire, or taking up the same. 7

Furthermore, it is a design of my invention to prevent the outer strands of the coil, when the wire is released, from becoming entangled in the reel; thus, with theordinary reel, the outer, loose strands tend to spring outward beyond the rim of the reel, and when the wire is again pulled taut, it draws inward at the under side of the reel, around the hub, becoming entangled and causing trouble. Y 1 I v The invention includes also a novel construction and arrangement of the wire guide to guide the wire to the reel, and to make provision for moving the guide into engagement with the reel, to lock the same against rotation, when desired.

My invention also has for its design to provide a brake device that may be readily and conveniently adjusted and set to regulate the degree of freedom permitted the reel and revent the wire from being paid out too ast; the improved brake enables me to dispense with the services of a man especially to attend to the braketo prevent thev paying out of the wire too freely, use being made of a simple brakeactuating device, preferably in the form of a wing nut, the adjustment of which serves to cause thebrake to exert the desired friction on the reel, so that the latter will re spend to a pull on the wire without permitting the wire to unwind too fast.

Thedistinguishing features of my invention, and the important structural elements characterizing the preferred embodiment which is illustrated as an example, will be more particularly explained in the specific description hereinafter to be given.

Reference is to behad to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

. Figure 1 is a side elevation of a wire-reel embodylng my invention, the reel being mounted to turn on a vertical axis; Fig. 2 is a plan view, the operating handle of the reel being omitted; Fig. .3 is a vertical section, part of the supporting, stand being broken awayyFig. 4 is a detail view in elevation to be hereinafter morev particularly referred to; Fig. 5 is a fragmentary detail plan view showing a modification of a reel spoke; Fig. 6 is a vertical section-- ofthe device shown in Fig. 5, and Fig. 7 is :a fragmentary sectional plan View of a portion of the reel rim and wire guide, illustrating aniodification.

In constructing a reel of the illustrated form, the reel proper 10 is mounted to rotate on a T-axle consisting of the T-head 11, and the elongated shank 12, which may be formed separately and united by a T-coupling 13. The axle is adapted to be received in a socket in any suitable stand 1 1. The drawings show the T-head 11 engaged with the stand 1% so. that the reel rotates on a vertical axis, and in practice the head 11 may be removed from the stand 14- and the shank 12 entered in the said stand. I prefer to form the shank 12 with a slight angular offset 12 at the lower end, as shown in Fig. 1, in order that when the shank is entered in the socket of the stand l l, the axis of the reel instead of being exactly horizontal, will be at a slight angle above the horizontal, and will thus partially relieve the head 11 of the weight of the coil of wire.

In connection with the reel 10, a wire,

guidele is employed, of novel form as here inafter explained, said guide being supported on an L-shaped rod16, the shank 15 of which is secured to a, ortion of the structure fixed relatively to t e reel. In the form ire I other suitable means.

shown the shank 16 is adapted to here ceived adjustably in a hole 17 formed in a flange collar 17 fitting the head 11 above the coupling 13 and held in place by any suitable means, as by a set screw 17". A set Out-weirdly curved reel arms 21 are pro vided on the reel to receive the wire, the inner ends of the said arms being receivedin radial slots 23 1n certa1n spokes 24, the saidarms being clamped to the spokes'by' clamp nuts 22, in the present instance; Allternating with the spokes 24 are other spokes 25, which preferably are disposed at an angle to the face of the reel and rearwardly inclined from the rim 10 of the reel to the hub, in order to constitute braces to sustain the weight of a heavy coil of wire when the reel is mounted to rotate on a vertical axis. On, the other hand the spokes 24 carrying the reel-arms'2'1, extend from the hub substantially perpendicular to-the axis of rotation, and for the most "part substantially flush with the reel rim 10. The

, spokes 24, however, near their outer ends and adjacent to the rim 10, are formed with an inward depression as at 26, (Fig. 3.)

With the described form and arrangement of the spokes 24, the loose outer strands of a coil of wire, when the wire is released, will be prevented from springing outward over the rim 10 as they will be received in the depressions 26. Thus the wire will be prevented from springing over the reel rim, and will not be drawn inward at the back ofthe reel in response to a pull on the wire. At the same time, by having the major portion of the spokes 24 flush with the rim, or slightly outward from the plane of the rim, the wire, when it is being taken up, will be 1 roperly fed onto the reel, and will not,

e held away from the face of the spokes by the rim.

The spokes may be secured to the hub and rim in any suitable manner. 1 In Figs. 1 to 3, the inner end of each spoke 25 is shown as formed with a collar 30 adjacent to the inner end of the spoke, andthe. spoke is passed through the sleeve'19 Fig. 3, the extreme end being upset or riveted, as at 31. The spokes 24, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, are'\ formed with sector-shaped, flanged the flanged ends 32 to :the hubsleeve 19*. It. is to be understood that the sleeve 19 is shrunk on the hub 19, or otherwise fixedly held thereon so that the turning of the said hub by the handle 20 or otherwise, will serve to turn the reel 10 therewith.-

It will be understood in practice that the.

spokes 24 may be formedon orseeured to the'hub in any suitable manner; in Figs. 5 and 6 a spoke 24 is illustrated, which is slotted at its inner-end to provide forked members'24 between which is received a radial flange 19-onthehub 19 The outer ends of the spokes 24, as seen best in- Fig. 2,

are forked to present diverging arms 27, which have the depressed formation 26 previously referred to, and said arms may be formed with feet 28 to receive rivets 29.

The" spokes 25 at the outer ends are suitably secured to the rim 10?? as at 25% In the form shown in Figs. 5 and 6 the-spoke'24 at its outer end is formed with an opening 24, the extremejend of the spoke is secured to the'rim 10 by rivets 34, or. equivalent means; Y

Reverting to the wire guide 15, it is formed with a suitable'eye 15 through which the wire may pass. A set screw 15 serves to secure it to its supporting rod 16. The guide may be moved on the rod 16 toward or from the face of the reel 10, and in order to interlock the guide and the'reel, to pre:

vent the turning of the latter, I- givethe reel and guide such a co'actin'g confermation as to enable the one to be engaged with the other. Various means may be employed'for reel, to a position shownin Figs. 1 and 3,

the reel may freely rotate and the wire will be properly guided thereto; or the guide may be moved inward on the rod 16 to the position indicated in Fig. 2, wherein the locking member 15 is entered'in one of the mentioned holes 10 In the form shown-in Fig. 7, the rim 10 of the reel has one or more-radial holes, indicated by the character 10% and thewire-guide 15 has its stud or equivalent locking member 15 projecting in a direction to enter a radialhole 10 of the wheel rim,-by a swinging movement ofthe guide on t-hesupporting arm letoward and from the reel, in the plane of the latter. The threaded shank18of the brake is adapted to bemoved axially by a wing nut-18 which isthreaded onto said shank outside of the lug 17 to bear against the latter, the arrangement being such that a turning of the nut in either direction will serve to cause the hook 18 to exert more or less pressure on the hub of the reel. Thus the operator can adjust the action of the brake to allow the reel to have just the right degree of freedom of movement, without permitting it too great a freedom. Thus the reel does not need the continued attention of an attendant, and the services of a man to regulate the brake pressure, as ordinarily required, are made unnecessary.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

l. A wire-reel comprising a hub, a rim, spokes extending from the hub to the rim and provided with arms for holding the.

wire, the said spokes being approximately flush with the rim for the'greater portion of their length and inclining within the plane of the rims at their outer ends, said outer ends joining the rim inward from the edges thereof, and additional spokes alter-v nating with the first-mentioned spokes, joining the rim in annular alinement with the ends of the first mentioned spokes and said additional spokes being inclined rearwardly from the rim to the hub and being also at an angle to the first-mentioned spokes.

2. The combination with a reel, of a reversible T-axle comprising a shank and a T-head, on one arm of the T-head of which the reel is mounted to rotate, the reel and the said arm being coaxial and'a supportin which either the remaining arm of the T- head of the axle or the mentioned shank is receivable.

3. The combination with a reel, of a reversible T-axle comprising a shank and a T-head, on one arm of the T-head of which thereel is mounted to rotate, and a support having a socket in which either the remain ing arm of the T-head of the axle or the mentioned shank is receivable, the said shank of the T-axle being at the end opposite the. T-head terminating in an inclined portion.

4. The combination of a support having a socket, a reversible T-shaped axle, and a reel revoluble on one arm of the T-head of said axle and co-axial therewith, either the other arm of the T-head or the said shank being receivable in said socket.

5. A wire-reel comprising a fixed axle, a hub having a handle thereon at one end and revoluble on said axle, a sleeve fixed on. said hub, spokes secured at their inner ends on said sleeve, wire-holding arms on said spokes, a crank handle on the hub outside of the said arms, additional spokes also secured to said sleeve alternating with the firstmentioned spokes and disposed at an angle thereto, and a rim secured to the outer ends ofall of said spokes.

6. The combination with a reel, of a wire guide, and a support for said guide on which the latter is adjustable in a direction approximately parallel with the axis of the reel and adapted to be swung laterally on said support, the said guide and the reel having coacting members to engage each other.

7 The combination with a reel and a fixed axle therefor, of a flange collar on said axle back of the reel, an L-shap'ed rod, one arm of which is secured to said collar, the other arm of the rod terminating at its outer end adjacent to therim of the reel, and ranging approximately parallel with the axis of the reel, and a wire-guide mounted on said latter arm to move axiallythereon, or to swing laterally, the reelhaving an annular series of holes and the guide having a lug to enter anyone of said holes thatis brought into line with the lug.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WM. G. SMITQH, W. F. Bnox.

copies'of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. 0." 

